McNamara Settling In

Victoria Spector

07/25/2014

Entering his second year with the Staten Island Yankees, right-handed pitcher Dillon McNamara has continued to pitch well. The Staten Island native returned this year with experience, maturity and confidence while on the mound, and while the numbers might not exactly show it, he has improved his game rather well this season.

Despite going 4-3 with a 2.19 ERA for the Staten Island Yankees last season, he didn't break camp with any of the long-season league teams this season and instead was sent to Extended Spring Training to continue developing his game.

"I think it helped and I think it was necessary," McNamara said. "I learned a lot and it has helped me to develop my slider more and my changeup.

"Obviously you want to move up and progress through the system but I got to be at home and to play on Staten Island again."

So far so good. The Adelphi University product has gone 1-1 with a 3.12 ERA for the Staten Island Yankees and even earned a spot start in Double-A Trenton on July 9th.

"He's pitching with a lot of confidence right now and I think he's attacking hitters very well," manager Mario Garza said. "He got the opportunity to go pitch in Trenton for a day. I think that was a big day for him, to show him he can pitch at higher levels and to show him he can get those batters out."

Garza has been impressed with McNamara's development since day one this season and believes that his time in Extended Spring Training earlier this year has served him well.

"I thought he looked pretty good in Extended," Garza said. "I think that he's really come on strong lately. He's done a really nice job of improving his secondary pitches to a point where he can throw them at any count, that's something we started to see during Extended Spring Training and we're seeing more of it now."

"Dillon's a sinker and slider guy. He's developed in that third pitch," pitching coach Tim Norton added. "He's a guy who is going to fill up the strike zone and going to pitch off that slider.

"He really goes to that. [We worked on] just getting down in the zone consistently and developing that third pitch."

Stuff-wise there was nothing wrong with McNamara a year ago. He had a fastball that topped out at 95 mph and some good looking secondary pitches too, but for him it was just small tweaks to his entire game that was needed and his time in Extended Spring Training afforded him that.

"Sometimes guys have the stuff, they just need innings to kind of figure it out and just become more consistent," Norton said. "I think just maturity is a big part of it and just getting some innings to feel more comfortable.

"Being here for the second year, you can start to see him settle in a little bit. He got a shot up in Trenton and pitched pretty well for three innings and it got away from him but he's maturing."

Specifically, both Norton and McNamara are confident that the slider is his best pitch now, a pitch he can really utilize going forward.

"I'm impressed," Norton said. "He has filled up the zone and that slider is a big league slider at 85 to 87. If we can just do all the other things; command that fastball and sinker like we need to and keep working on that changeup we'll be alright. We'll have something."

"I'm throwing sliders," McNamara added, "that's my best pitch I can get that up to like 88. Fastball I've been setting like 91 to 94 and I'm working on my changeup."

McNamara admits that his changeup could use some improvement, however. He is working on commanding his changeup to lefties and pitching deeper into games.

"We can always be more consistent with being down in the zone," Norton said. "If he can get that third pitch going and give the hitters something else to think about that will be big for him.

"This year I'm seeing some big improvement lately, especially with that third pitch. He threw the best changeup I've ever seen him throw [the other day]. I can see him inching towards developing that third pitch and he's doing a great job of that," Norton concluded.

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\r\n \r\n\r\nDespite going 4-3 with a 2.19 ERA for the Staten Island Yankees last season, he didn't break camp with any of the long-season league teams this season and instead was sent to Extended Spring Training to continue developing his game.\r\n\r\n\"I think it helped and I think it was necessary,\" McNamara said. \"I learned a lot and it has helped me to develop my slider more and my changeup.\r\n\r\n\"Obviously you want to move up and progress through the system but I got to be at home and to play on Staten Island again.\"\r\n\r\nSo far so good. The Adelphi University product has gone 1-1 with a 3.12 ERA for the Staten Island Yankees and even earned a spot start in Double-A Trenton on July 9th.\r\n\r\n\"He's pitching with a lot of confidence right now and I think he's attacking hitters very well,\" manager Mario Garza said. \"He got the opportunity to go pitch in Trenton for a day. I think that was a big day for him, to show him he can pitch at higher levels and to show him he can get those batters out.\"\r\n\r\nGarza has been impressed with McNamara's development since day one this season and believes that his time in Extended Spring Training earlier this year has served him well.\r\n\r\n\"I thought he looked pretty good in Extended,\" Garza said. \"I think that he's really come on strong lately. He's done a really nice job of improving his secondary pitches to a point where he can throw them at any count, that's something we started to see during Extended Spring Training and we're seeing more of it now.\"\r\n\r\n\"Dillon's a sinker and slider guy. He's developed in that third pitch,\" pitching coach Tim Norton added. \"He's a guy who is going to fill up the strike zone and going to pitch off that slider.\r\n\r\n\"He really goes to that. [We worked on] just getting down in the zone consistently and developing that third pitch.\"\r\n\r\nStuff-wise there was nothing wrong with McNamara a year ago. He had a fastball that topped out at 95 mph and some good looking secondary pitches too, but for him it was just small tweaks to his entire game that was needed and his time in Extended Spring Training afforded him that.\r\n\r\n\"Sometimes guys have the stuff, they just need innings to kind of figure it out and just become more consistent,\" Norton said. \"I think just maturity is a big part of it and just getting some innings to feel more comfortable.\r\n\r\n\"Being here for the second year, you can start to see him settle in a little bit. He got a shot up in Trenton and pitched pretty well for three innings and it got away from him but he's maturing.\"\r\n\r\nSpecifically, both Norton and McNamara are confident that the slider is his best pitch now, a pitch he can really utilize going forward.\r\n\r\n\"I'm impressed,\" Norton said. \"He has filled up the zone and that slider is a big league slider at 85 to 87. If we can just do all the other things; command that fastball and sinker like we need to and keep working on that changeup we'll be alright. We'll have something.\"\r\n\r\n\"I'm throwing sliders,\" McNamara added, \"that's my best pitch I can get that up to like 88. Fastball I've been setting like 91 to 94 and I'm working on my changeup.\"\r\n \r\nMcNamara admits that his changeup could use some improvement, however. He is working on commanding his changeup to lefties and pitching deeper into games.\r\n\r\n\"We can always be more consistent with being down in the zone,\" Norton said. \"If he can get that third pitch going and give the hitters something else to think about that will be big for him.\r\n\r\n\"This year I'm seeing some big improvement lately, especially with that third pitch. He threw the best changeup I've ever seen him throw [the other day]. I can see him inching towards developing that third pitch and he's doing a great job of that,\" Norton concluded.\r\n\r\n

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